Increase in Unemployment among Disabled Americans

The number of disabled Americans who applied for Social Security disability insurance during the 3rd quarter of 2012 remained the same compared to last year, even as data from insurer Allsup revealed that the unemployment rate for disabled Americans increased.

During the 3rd quarter of 2012, the rate of unemployment for Americans with disabilities increased to 13.7% from 12.9% during the 2nd quarter of 2012. However, that did not necessarily translate into an increase in Social Security disability insurance applications. Those numbers stayed somewhat the same. In the 2nd quarter of 2012, 731,817 people had applied for Social Security disability insurance. That number dropped slightly to 726,026 people in the 3rd quarter of this year.

Allsup has released a report titled, Allsup Disability Study: Income at Risk. According to the report, in 2012, close to 2.2 million individuals who are currently unable to work because of a disability, applied for Social Security disability insurance. Out of these, 31.8 million Social Security disability insurance claims are believed to be pending. Average wait times for claims processing now stand at more than 800 days.

Considering that Americans who suffer from a disability and are unemployed can only rely on their Social Security disability insurance payments for their daily expenses, this long waiting period can be extremely frustrating and traumatic. Social Security disability insurance payments can provide a disabled person a regular income to support himself and his family. When such workers have their claims delayed due to long waiting periods, they may be put through unimaginable financial hardship. Claimants must exhaust all available funds, depend on friends or family for help or depend upon government assistance programs and/or non-profit shelters for housing.

Lisa Siegel is a Social Security disability lawyer helping persons with disabilities in the metro Atlanta region recover their rightful disability benefits. If you are eligible for Social Security, and have had a claim denied, speak with us to learn your rights.